Assets used in a field service operation entering the field service company supply chain typically have excellent documentation, inventory, and accountability at the initial point of receipt, such as the central warehouse or at the organization that directly receives an item (e.g., the directly delivered test set). However, once there is movement of that asset beyond the initial point of entry into a field service company control, inventory, and accountability become a real problem regarding loss prevention, leakage, and lack of asset knowledge leading to overstock.
Today assets used by field service technicians are not tracked with the kind of precision needed for proper accountability and control. In some cases today, where companies have tried to implement accountability and control measures, increases in labor costs and human intervention have been known to cause errors and reduce the accuracy of these control measures.